The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) is reminding all operators of traditional public utility vehicles (PUV) that their consolidation deadline is April 30.
PUVs that fail to consolidate will not be allowed to operate after April 30, unless new guidelines are issued, LTFRB 6 officer-in-charge Salvador Altura Jr. said Thursday, April 11.
Altura joined a meeting presided by Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on the need for the Negros Occidental provincial government to submit its Local Public Transport Route Plan (LPTRP), held at the Social Hall of the Capitol in Bacolod City.
Consolidation refers to the government requirement for PUV operators to form cooperatives or corporations for them to gain access to business financing to acquire modern units.
It is the initial stage of the government’s PUV Modernization Program.
Once operators file a petition for consolidation with the LTFRB they are issued an order that is then used to secure a franchise conformation for renewal of registration, Altura said.
PUVs failing to obtain that will be considered illegal, he said.
He said Bacolod City has completed its LPTRP and all its routes are fully consolidated.
Meanwhile, Negros Occidental is the lone province in Western Visayas that has yet to submit its LPTRP, Lacson said.
Lacson said he has asked the Provincial Planning and Development Office to rush its completion.
The Negros Occidental PUV routes have not been fully consolidated since its LPTRP has yet to be completed, Altura said.*